Master and Slaves

The place we emerged into was a vast wasteland.

A clear blue sky stretched above red-brown rocky terrain laid completely bare.

It reminded me of the setting from an American Western.

There were no cacti or tumbleweeds, but sparse grass grew here and there, and large rocks were scattered across the landscape.

It was that kind of wasteland.

I had stepped out of a hole that had suddenly appeared in the air, and not far away I spotted a large army on the march.

It was clearly not on our side—something strange and ominous was moving in formation.

They weren’t human.

Some looked like dogs, others like pigs, and some like giants.

All of them walked on two legs wearing dirty armor.

If I had to guess, they were kobolds, orcs, and ogres.

There were also what appeared to be goblins and trolls.

Classic fantasy-world cannon fodder.

But there were a lot of them.

I was carrying one person and was injured myself. I was exhausted.

So I quietly slipped away from the area so I wouldn’t be spotted.

For now, I needed to find a place to rest.

I also wanted to let Tiria sleep properly.

Besides, my mind wouldn’t last much longer in this condition.

When I looked down, I saw naked Tiria.

Her well-shaped breasts rose and fell with each breath.

...

No, no, stop.

My son was starting to wake up.

I scanned the surroundings for a resting spot.

Nearby, there was a rock wall with an overhang like a roof, so I headed there.

That’s when I noticed a cave hidden in an inconspicuous spot further along the wall.

I peered inside.

It looked about six tatami mats in size.

Once inside, I smoothed the ground with my foot and gently laid Tiria down.

I leaned her staff, the Demon Lord’s sword, and my own blade against the wall, then sat down and rummaged through the bag.

There it was.

I found the robe Tiria had been wearing, spread it on the ground, and laid her on top of it.

Then I took the clothes and skirt I had once encouraged her to wear (also in the bag) and draped them over her body.

After removing anything hard or fragile from the bag, I rolled them up and placed them under her head as a pillow.

"Phew."

Finally, I could breathe.

I sat on the ground and leaned my back against the rock wall.

"Ghh—!!"

A sharp pain shot through my back.

That’s right. My back was injured.

This was the second time. Did I have no learning ability?

Annoyed that I couldn’t lean back, I flopped over onto my side.

Exhaustion brought drowsiness crashing over me.

"—!"

But the presence outside snapped me awake.

I moved to the cave entrance and cautiously peeked out.

A bipedal creature with a dog’s face.

A kobold-like being.

One of them was wandering around.

Probably a scout from earlier.

I drew my blade from its sheath and readied myself to pounce at any moment.

If it found me, I’d have no choice but to kill it.

But if I killed it here, its companions would become suspicious of this area.

Next time, a large group might come searching.

I kept my attention focused on it while praying it would leave.

It wandered around for a while, then eventually went back.

I returned to my spot and sat cross-legged.

Right. I couldn’t sleep.

I had no idea when or who might attack.

At least until Tiria woke up, I needed to stay alert.

I held my blade and concentrated on the presence outside, ready to move at any time.

How much time had passed?

The sun had already set, and two moons shone in the sky.

One was full, the other a crescent.

They were proof that this wasn’t Earth.

Proof that this was another world.

The impossible sight once again reminded me of that fact.

Since arriving at this cave, I had fought twice.

The first time was against wolf-like creatures.

They had silver fur and ran on four legs.

They were roughly the same size as Earth wolves.

I sensed their presence and went outside, where about ten of them attacked me.

I handled them easily with my blade.

I even knocked several down without drawing it from the sheath, and the rest fled in panic.

The second time was another kobold-like creature.

I wasn’t sure if it was the same one that had been wandering earlier, but it had found the cave and approached.

I ambushed it and killed it in one strike.

I didn’t know if it would buy time, but I carried the corpse far away before returning to the cave.

That had been a little while ago.

Since I’d killed the kobold, enemies could show up at any moment.

I decided to prepare so we could leave immediately if needed.

Sorry about this—I lifted Tiria’s head to take the bag I’d been using as her pillow.

"Mmm... mhh..."

Tiria slowly opened her eyes.

I was right in front of her.

The situation was pretty close to nighttime creeping.

"G-Good morning."

I greeted her, trying to stay calm.

If I panicked here, it would only make things more suspicious.

"Good morning... to you."

But Tiria still seemed half-asleep. She replied with her eyes half-closed, looking drowsy.

I gently placed her head back on the bag without taking it.

Tiria’s eyes gradually returned to normal size—then opened even wider.

"M-Master?!"

As I sat down beside her, Tiria bolted upright.

The clothes I’d draped over her slipped open, and her breasts bounced with a boing.

"What happened to the Demon Lord?! What happened to the Demon Lord?!"

I calmed Tiria, who looked like she was about to grab me.

"W-Wait, wait. Calm down. It’s okay. I defeated it properly."

I pointed at the Demon Lord’s sword leaning against the wall.

"I-I’m so glad... With this... with this..."

Tiria suddenly gasped.

She hurriedly stood up and moved behind me.

"Ah...... ah..."

I couldn’t see her face, but she seemed speechless.

"I wish for it. Heal the wounds caused by his flames."

"Cure Burn!"

Tiria chanted with a tearful voice.

At the final, louder part, my back was gently enveloped in something warm.

The dull pain that had tormented me vanished.

However, a slight tightness remained.

Tiria traced my back with her finger.

"...I wish for it. Heal the wounds caused by his flames."

"Cure Burn!"

As soon as she removed her finger, Tiria repeated the same chant.

Warmth once again wrapped my back comfortably, but nothing more changed.

"U... uuu..."

"I wish for..."

Tiria began chanting a third time.

"Tiria!"

I felt her jump.

"...I’m sorry... I’m sorry... I... uuu... u... uwaaaaaahhhhh!"

Tiria threw her arms around my back and cried while apologizing over and over.

The healing probably hadn’t been perfect.

Since it was a burn, a keloid scar must have remained.

There was still that tight sensation.

The delay in treatment was likely why the scar remained.

And during that critical moment, she had lost consciousness.

So she blamed herself, apologized, and cried.

That was probably it.

I took Tiria’s hand and turned around.

"G... Go... shu... jin... sa... ma..."

I pulled the sobbing, hiccupping Tiria into a proper embrace.

"It’s okay now. Thanks to you, the pain is gone too."

"But—!"

"Even if a scar remains, it’s on my back. It’s a badge of honor from defeating the Demon Lord."

"But—! If I hadn’t used magic back then, I wouldn’t have run out of mana and fainted! If I hadn’t left the barrier, Master wouldn’t have gotten hurt—!"

I see. Tiria really is sharp. She understood the root cause.

"That’s true. But it’s good that you understand. Besides, you did really well, Tiria."

"I... I... u... uu... kuu..."

While hugging her, I stroked her head.

Her blonde hair was silky and pleasant to touch.

A sweet scent tickled my nose.

"Sniff... snff..."

After a while, her crying subsided.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes."

"Good. This is the second time I’ve seen your crying face, Tiria."

I wiped her tears with my index finger.

"Ehh, m-mouu. Master, you’re so mean."

She pouted, then broke into a smile.

The crow that cried had already laughed.

"Alright. Once the sun rises, let’s leave this place."

"Yes. Until then, please rest, Master. I’ll keep watch."

"Sounds good. I’ll take you up on that."

"Yes. Leave it to me."

Tiria puffed out her chest, making her breasts jiggle.

"Hahaha. Then, good night."

"Good night, Master."

I lay down using my arm as a pillow.

But I had no intention of sleeping.

There was the earlier kobold incident, and I needed to be ready to move at any time.

Tiria started putting the things I had taken out back into the bag, so that side was fine.

Once I relaxed a little, my consciousness drifted away.

Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

"Master... Master..."

Someone was shaking me.

I was still sleepy. I wanted to sleep a little longer.

I pulled up the blanket over me and curled into a ball.

"Master... Master..."

Someone tried to pull the blanket off.

Nngh, so persistent.

Was it time to go to university?

Yuki must be waking me up.

I slowly opened my eyes, but instead of who I expected, there was the face of a white-haired girl.

Not... Yuki.

...

Yuki... huh.

It had been a while since that name came up.

Normally it was always in the back of my mind.

I used to think about Yuki every time I did anything.

But ever since coming here, I’d been thinking only about someone else.

That "someone else"—the white-haired girl Tiria—confirmed I was awake and greeted me.

"Good morning, Master."

"Good morning, Tiria. Is it already morning?"

I had fallen asleep without realizing.

Thinking about what could have happened if we were attacked made me break into a cold sweat.

"Yes, Master."

Completely unaware of my inner thoughts, Tiria smiled brightly.

I reached above my head, searching for my glasses.

"..."

Right. I didn’t have them.

I’d done it out of habit again.

I stood up and stretched.

The clothes that had been covering me slipped off.

Tiria must have put them on me.

What I had thought was a blanket in my drowsy state was probably this.

"Was there anything?"

"No. Nothing happened."

Tiria answered.

Well, even if something had, as long as Tiria was safe now, that was fine.

Time to think about what came next.

"By the way, Tiria, do you know where we are?"

"Yes. Um, I believe this is Lijja Valley."

I had asked with low expectations, thinking she probably wouldn’t know, but I got a proper answer.

"While keeping watch, I took a quick look around. I think we’re at the eastern edge of the valley..."

...I thought again that Tiria was really smart.

"So, how far is it from here to your country?"

"We are already inside my country, the Kingdom of Torres."

"Eh? Really? ...Then where are we heading?"

"Yes. Um, the royal capital of Torres Kingdom—Torrestia."

"Hmm. So how long does it take to reach Torrestia?"

"Yes. Um, I think we can arrive in about half a day."

"Eh? That close?"

"Yes."

"I see. Then that’s our final destination."

"Yes."

"Alright, let’s get ready."

"Yes."

I put the robe that had been covering me back into the bag and looked around.

There was nothing on the ground.

Tiria must have put everything I had taken out back into the bag.

I picked up the bag, hung my blade at my waist, and held the Demon Lord’s sword in my hand.

Tiria, as usual, had a short sword strapped to her thigh and held her staff.

We were ready.

"Alright, let’s go."

As I stood eagerly at the cave entrance, Tiria hesitantly spoke from behind me.

"Um, Master. Before that... there is one thing I’d like to ask of you."